Salt & Vinegar Potato Salad

I'm not a fan of mayo-based potato salad, so when I saw this recipe on line, it spoke to me. So much so, that I bookmarked it and thought about it for over a year, keeping it to make for a summer day. It's a great dish to make to accompany a barbecue, or any other warm weather main.

Let's get started...

Start by marinating the onions in vinegar. I didn't have cider, so used red wine instead.

You can mix up the dressing while the potatoes cook. The secret ingredient here is Old Bay seasoning, which is commonly used in seafood dishes. It's salty blend of spices, and works well in this salad. I'm not sure if you can buy it in Canada. I managed to pick up a tin on my last trip to the U.S.

Put those asbestos fingers to use and peel the taters once they're boiled. Cooking them with the skin on helps keep the shape, and you probably could stip this step altogether if you really wanted.

Mix the still-warm potatoes in the dressing and add in the onions. The result is a spicy salad, with the creamy texture of the Yukon golds. Serve at room temperature, but keeps very well in the fridge for a few days.

Salt & Vinegar Potato Salad
Found on Shutterbean (adapted from Gourmet Magazine)

1 large red onion, cut lengthwise into 1/3 wide wedges and layers separated
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
2 teaspoons salt
4 lb. medium yellow fleshed potatoes such as Yukon Gold
2 1/2 teaspoons Old Bay Seasoning
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Toss the onion & 2 tablespoons vinegar with 1/2 teaspoon salt in a bowl. Marinate at room temperature, tossing occasionally until slightly softened and pink. This should take about 45 minutes.

Cover the potatoes with salted cold water in a large pot, simmer, uncovered until just tender. Takes about 20 minutes.

While the potatoes are cooking, whisk together 2 1/2 teaspoons Old Bay seasoning with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and remained 1/2 cup vinegar in a bowl.

Drain potatoes in a colander, and peel off skins when they are cool enough to handle. Cut into 1/2 inch wedges. Toss the warm potatoes with the vinegar mixture in a larger bowl. Add the onion mixture & oil. Toss to combine. Add more Old Bay seasoning, if desired. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Ricotta cheese

What's the traditional way to celebrate Canada Day weekend, and the arrival of Will and Kate in Ottawa? Make homemade ricotta, of course!

Er, maybe not, but perhaps I invented a new tradition that will sweep the nation by this time next year. Yep, while the crowds were on the Hill, sweating and crammed in like sardines to see the royals, I boiled up some milk and got down to cheese making. Hard to say who had a more glamorous time -- me or Kate -- but I did don a fascinator for the occasion.

Anyway, the recipe's from the new Jamie Oliver magazine, and I thought it looked both interesting and relatively easy, so opted to give it a try. Funnily enough, it starts out by stating that ricotta's a good way to use up leftover milk. But who has two litres of milk just left over? And left over from what is a better question.

Start by bringing the milk to a boil in a large pot. Two litres is a lot of milk, let me tell you, and you'll be shocked at how little cheese it makes.

Once you add in the vinegar and let the mixture sit for a while, you spoon out the curds into a strainer. I didn't have any cheesecloth to line mine, so I used a (clean) linen tea towel.

This is what the cheese looks like after 15 minutes of resting in the strainer.

And this is what it looks like after it's all bundled up and the remaining whey is squeezed out. There's a lot of whey! (And a lot of blue veins on my wrist. I ought to have that checked out.)

And here's the finished product. The recipe says it produced 300g of cheese, and while I didn't weigh it, I'd estimate it at just over a cup or so. Honestly, I found the texture of this a little disappointing. I was hoping for something creamy and salty, but it was pretty dry and a little bland. I'd chalk this recipe up to more of a fun science experiment than a roaring success.

It tasted better on toast though, with some roasted asparagus and drizzled with some olive oil. Makes a great lunch!

Cheat's Ricotta
From Jamie Magazine, June 2011 edition

2 litres full-fat milk, cow or goat
1 tsp sea salt flakes
100 ml rice vinegar or white vinegar
A large piece of muslin or cheesecloth

1. Pour the milk into a large, deep saucepan and place over medium heat. Add the salt and stir to dissolve.

2. As the milk comes to a boil, you'll see small bubbles forming. Remove spoon and add in vinegar all at once. You'll see small lumps form and rise to the surface as the milk curdles.

3. Once the mixture starts to boil, turn off the heat. Cover pan and leave for 15 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, line a sieve or colander with the cheescloth and place over a large bowl.

5. Remove lid from pan and gently lift the separated curds into the sieve. Or, slowly pour mixture from pan into sieve. Allow curds to sit in strainer for 15 minutes.

5. Wrap the fabric around the cheese and squeeze gently to remove more liquid, until you reach desired consistency. Unwrap the ricotta to serve, or cool commpletely then store in fridge for two days.

Summer salads

Summer's officially here, and since I'm still without a/c, I need to find meal options that don't involve turning on the oven.

Salads are a natural choice, and I decided to take advantage of the strawberries in season for this first one.

There's no recipe per se, but first I washed and dried a handful of spinach leaves and piled them on a plate. Next I cut up a cucumber and some strawberries, while I quickly toasted some pecans on the stove. I crumbed some goat cheese over, and drizzled olive oil and balsamic vinegar over the whole thing. Tasty!

This quinoa recipe was adapted from an LCBO flyer I got in the paper a couple of weeks ago. I adapted it slightly from the original version, throwing in some asparagus and leftover tomoatoes (I didn't have a full pint), and didn't bother to toast the sunflower seeds -- but they're a great, crunchy addition anyway. I at this as is, without the spinach leaves. It makes a great lunch seved cold.

Quintissential Quinoa Salad

Prepare quinoa first

1 1/2 c uncooked quinoa (I had only one cup)
2 1/2 c salted boiling water

Bring water to boil, then add in quinoa. Cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes until all water is absorbed. Set aside to cool.

Salad ingredients

1, 398ml can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
4 oz Feta cheese, crumbled
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
1 small red onion, finely diced
1/2 yellow pepper, diced
1/2 orange pepper diced
6 cups baby spinach leaves
1 c toasted sunflower seeds

Dressing (I halved the amount)

2 big cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp brown sugar
1/4 balsamic or red wine vinegar
1 c extra virgin olive oil
pinch salt
crackled black pepper

Combine all ingredients, except oil, in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Shake vigorously, then add oil in two batches, shaking between each addition.

Combine all ingredients in large bowl, and drizzle with dressing to taste.